It is generally well known that machine components such as, for example, bearing assemblies have significant pieces of information affixed thereto: Some of those pieces of information include part of the model numbers and are marked by stamping on an outer surface area of the machine component and some others recorded in documents that are separately replaced and stored. Those piece of information affixed to the machine components include, in the case of bearing assemblies, design information such as, for example, gap precision, material used to form each machine component, type of heat treatment used and description of grease filled, and/or management codes such as, for example, manufacturer's production number and customer's parts number. Additional information concerning customer's products, that is, machines and equipments, in which machine components such as, for example, bearing assemblies have been incorporated, is also stored in documents separately.
On the other hand, microelectronic IC tags have now been developed, making it possible to easily store and electronically collate various attribute information. Even the attribute information of components of bearing assemblies, if the IC tags are attached to those bearing components, has come to be easily managed and controlled. In addition, it can be applied to management of order placement and delivery and inventory management. (Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2002-49900)
Also, bearing assemblies designed to meet a special internal specification are generally delivered to customers in the form as enclosed within a bearing box together with a manual or instructions describing cares and cautions to be taken into consideration during the handling of the respective bearing assembly. Specifically, this manual describes cares and cautions (such as, for example, “Avoid shocks and impacts”) to be taken when the package is unwrapped, when the bearing assembly is incorporated in a machine and/or during storage of the bearing assembly. This type of manual is stored in a customers maintenance department or the like, but is generally discarded at an appropriate timing after the bearing assembly has been replaced with a new one. Accordingly, when the bearing assembly getting deteriorated with passage of time of use has to be replaced with a new one, the bearing assembly having the same specification as that of the bearing assembly to be replaced must be selected in anticipation of the replacement. In the customers maintenance department of the bearing manufacturer, maintenance of the respective specifications of the bearing assemblies being operated is indeed loaded. On the other hand, those machines and equipments are routinely inspected as to the presence or absence of an abnormality occurring in the bearing assemblies each time they are operated a predetermined distance. In general, such inspection is directed to vibrations and/or temperature rises occurring in the vicinity of the bearing assemblies. The job of inspection for that purpose often involves a work under a quite inadequate environment and/or a dangerous work, and reduction and simplification of the manufacturing steps are strongly desired accordingly. Although the foregoing problems have been discussed as being found where the machine component is a bearing assembly, problems similar to those discussed above may be equally found with any other machine components such as, for example, shaft couplings and motors that tend to deteriorate naturally with passage of time of use.
In the face of those problems discussed above, the applicant of this application has suggested (in, for example, the Japanese Laid-open Patent Publication No. 2004-54158) the handling manual of a kind having a display module for presenting the status of deterioration of the machine component. The suggested handling manual is in the form of a sticker in which handling instructions, model number, specification and others are described and is pasted to a machine incorporating the machine component so that when deterioration of such machine component is found during the routine inspection of the machine, arrangement can be efficiently made to secure necessary replacement parts (parts model number) from the manufacturer of the machine component.
When it comes to attachment of an IC tag to a machine component, not only is the site of placement limited, but the outside dimensions of the IC tag that can be attached to the machine component is limited. However, if a small IC tag is used, the storage capacity thereof is indeed small and it may occur that a sufficient amount of information cannot be stored in it. The use of a large IC tag to increase the storage capacity will result in such problems and inconveniences that part of the IC tag may protrude outwardly to form an obstacle to the neighboring parts and that the presence of a hole or recess for accommodating the IC tag may decrease the strength of the machine component. Where the IC tag is attached to the machine component, it is desirable to mount the IC tag on a portion of the machine component or its peripheral part that does not affect the strength and the precision, but where that portion of the machine component or its peripheral part is a rotatable element such as, for example, a roller retainer or cage employed in a rolling bearing assembly, mounting of the IC tag will eventually lead to disruption of a balance of the mass, accompanied by reduction in performance of the machine component.
Also, with the handling manual of the kind having the display module for presenting the status of deterioration as discussed above, it can serve the expected purpose if and so long as the machine or equipment is used within an agreeable environment such as, for example, an indoor space, but where the machine or equipment is used in the outdoor space, the handling manual may be susceptible to contamination and/or breakage that lead to the incapability of reading the part model number and the specification. In particular, if the part model number is hard to make out, particulars of the machine bearing such part model number have to be jotted down in a memo so that when the servicing person gets back to an office, he or she can make a reconfirmation of the part model number of the machine component in trouble by reading a maintenance document. By way of example, the iron and steel manufacturing equipment is generally full of powder dust, metallic powder (scale) and/or pulp chaff and railway vehicles are susceptible to contamination brought about by rain and powder dust, and it is therefore quite often that the part model number and the specification both referred to above will be hard to make out or incapable of being deciphered quickly.
Yet, in the conventional art, when it comes to attachment of the IC tag to a packaging container or the like of the machine component, the IC tag is so small as to pose a problem associated with handling thereof and, therefore, not only is the attachment complicated and time-consuming, but also the IC tag is hard to be reused.